Petrol & Ink / The index
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Look up a technical question, follow a car story or find an artwork.
The car
What is a hot hatch?
A hot hatch is an ordinary small hatchback given a much stronger engine and a firmer, sharper chassis. Nobody certifies the label, which is why the arguments never end.
The car
What is a JDM car?
JDM stands for Japanese Domestic Market. Literally it describes where a car, part or specification was built to be sold: inside Japan, rather than exported.
The car
What is a supercar?
A supercar is an extreme performance car, expensive and built in small numbers. There is no threshold of power, price or speed that officially makes one.
The car
What is engine displacement?
Displacement is the total volume all of an engine's pistons sweep through in one stroke, quoted in litres or cubic centimetres. It is a measure of size.
The car
What is horsepower?
Horsepower is a unit of power, meaning a measure of how fast work is done. One horsepower is 550 foot-pounds per second, which is about 745.7 watts.
The car
What is the difference between torque and horsepower?
Torque is a force that twists. Horsepower is a rate at which work gets done. Engine speed is what connects them, and it is why the two peak at different points.
The car
What is torque in a car?
Torque is turning force. In a car it is the twisting effort the engine makes at its crankshaft, quoted in pound-feet in the UK or newton-metres elsewhere.